Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-06-29
WILL Z 0 In FAVOR.
o-..,or. of Practical Men Against Anu
Far the Chemical Engines 1he'f
-.L.,%.ves and Disadvantages.

A0v8uV00No
.oen,a 70 be a wide divergence OF
80, about the value OF the cnem!cai
sno;oee az adjuncts OF the Butte f're ~
"e.-.,+ The test which was MADE on
r.;a.v evening seems to have connrmeo
hoth those in favor OF ire eneine. "
+hose opposed to them in their pre]oo'ese
rrank Themes, who was IN charge Oh !.
-ater company's reel, states that 'itrc mao
W. heen for the loss OF time at the corner
- pork and Montana in making the con
o...;on the water company would nave a.
nSe;r hnnf re- extipguished before the chem
s.aI engine began to play on theirs. nc
=. ns t1at h;s foul years experience on u
s :; 60 denartment in Boston Taught MIN
fha+ tn nae chemical engines with success
- was necessary to have in use tne e'ec'rio
fre-alarm system with
ALL THE ADVANTAGES
conneeted with a paid department-men
and horses on the spot ready to Jump in'o
their places at the first sound OF the t'cker
prepared for immediate action-when tne
lipht Babcock engines could reach the nre
| and be playing on it before the heavle1 Ina
| chimes were ready to start. In sucn III
stances, he said, the chemical engines nave
a. show to get their work in when IT can De
e,fectnal, The case in Butte is quite differ
emf. Even when the iremen get to their
| engine house after the alarm is d
thew do not know with certainty where the
fire ia burning, If the fire has made mead
way enough to indicate it's presence oy us
| bJa re then the time for advantageous use
| of the chemicals is past. A deluge OF water
is the only remedy then, and If the cheml-
| calls had been brought they would be use
less.
that they were invaluable in checking
a conhagration in it's incip-
iency, but the facilities for their use in
| Butte were utterly inadequate to handle
| them effectively. This opinion was in
| doreed by several other members OF the
water companies. The great need they ex-
! p~erience at present is for lighter hose than
they low have. The rubber hose now IN
use is the heaviest kind made, and U feet
is a complement for one cart. If they had
lipen hose they could put 1900 feet OF it
on the truck and ave no greater weight
to haul than at present. The linen hose
is almost universally in use, and the coun-
Gil has been repeatedly asked to procure a
supply for use by our fire companies. As a
VOLUNTEER DEPARTMENT
serving without pay they think themselves
entitled to some consideration at the
hands of the city fathers, especially as they
have hitherto assessed themselves for all
the apparatus in use. On the other hand
gentlemen connected with the existing
companies and old fremen say hat the
result of the work lone by the chemical
engine on Friday evening proves it to be
all it's advocates claimed for it. The. men
who worked it were unfamiliar with it's use.
The tank containing the chemicals should
have been prepared for use on the instant
of it's arrival at the bonfire by being given
a turning over thereby allo wing the
sulphuric acid to mix with the soda in the
water before reaching the fire, a matter o.
only a few seconds, but which. if it had
been
DONE AT THE START,
would have provided a more effective
stream. Time was lost in %uncoiling the
rubber hose which was unnecessary, as, ut
the short range at which they played, a
few turns OF the reel were all THAT was neces.
sary. 1t is claimed with an almost unan
swerable show of reasoning that the light
machine can be more quickly hauled to a
fire than the hose carts which weigh four
times as much. The advocat ties OF the
chemicals assert that with a little practice
these engines will be proved to be much
more convenient in use and just as effective
in every case rs the hose carts. The charge
that the chemically prepared water is de-
structive to clothing and goods has been
proved %groundless and lea VI no more
stain where it falls than water. There are
no doubt a suficiency OF admirers OF ths
chemical engines to man them when occa-
sion presents itself and give them an oppor.
tunity in actual practice to show the
merit they really possess.